The famous city of Venice is under serious threat due to the rise in sea level and sinking of land at an alarming rate (Fig.1).

A defense system, called MOSE, has been designed to prevent the recurring flooding of sea water with levels up to 3 m; it consists of 78 mobile gates and it is expected to be operational by 2014.

Every mobile gate is 20 m wide x 20/30 m long with about 5 m thickness; each gate weight over 300 tons and it is laid at the bottom of the inlet channel and supported by steel and concrete pilings. The gates swing around their bottom hinge from horizontal up to vertical position in about 30 minutes and take about 15 minutes to retract (Fig 2).

To grant long term fixed position and also for safety maintenance operations, each gate is provided, on its end positions, of a locking system actuated by Atos electrohydraulic servocylinders ATEX certified according to 94/9/EC directive (Fig.4).

Atos North America will again be co-exhibiting with Controlled Fluids at OTC this May. If you are attending this very popular event, stop by and visit us at Booth #6537. We look forward to seeing you there!

Atos “rugged” electrohydraulics is largely used for the automation machinery in foundries, steelworks and rolling mills, thank’s to its capability to withstand the toughest environmental conditions such as heat, dust and vibrations.

High dynamic servoproportionals perform combined control of speed and force with high precisions and repeatability in rollover stripping machines, tele-manipulators for castings handling and tilting furnaces.

Atos hydraulic systems and power units are designed and manufactured according to International Safety Regulations and Machine Directive 2006/42/CE. They adopt smart solutions to avoid fluid contamination and special material and seals to withstand temperatures up to 60 °C and operate with fire resistant fluid (HFD, HFD-U, HFC).

Energy efficiency improvement in modern machinery boosted the development of “energy saving” hydraulic solutions consisting of fixed displacement pumps driven by an electric motor + inverter in alternative to the traditional system with asynchronous motor coupled to variable servopump with on-board digital P/Q control.

Wood processing companies adopt up-to-date technology to comply with the growing demands of top performances, improved production efficiency and long service life in presence of high shock and vibrations.

Atos has developed a “Rugged” electrohydraulic line, specifically designed for wood process applications, able to withstand typical mechanical shock up to 50 g and high frequencies up to 55 Hz.

Power units are manufactured according to the Machine Directive 2006/42/CE with customized solutions for a direct integration into the machinery plus protective coating for aggressive environments and low noise level down to 70 dB.

The worldwide growing demand for clean and renewable energy sources constantly increases the general focus on Green Power. Wind turbines are the most developed solution where innovative technologies are put in place to increase efficiency and reliability.Atos has developed a specific solution for the dynamic regulation of the turbine’s blades angle (pitch control), consisting of: